If you've had trouble fitting in at church, Pearland has a new option for you. Rewake Inc. meets at the town's brand-new Bakfish Brewing Co., and the church's leadership is as laid-back and welcoming as its home base.

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'Church in the brewery' hopes to attract different Pearland crowd

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Most people who rent out a brewery are probably planning to drink beer, so the owners of Bakfish Brewing Co. did not expect to provide a home for Sunday church services.

But on Easter Sunday, and every Sunday moving forward, worshipers will indeed gather at Bakfish, which is the new base for Rewake Inc., an unaffiliated Christian church founded by Pearland residents Phil and Gina Brown.

“It threw me off at first,” Bakfish co-founder Brian Allen said. He had planned all of the brewery’s rental packages to include the price of beer and the church will not be serving alcohol.

Lead Pastor Phil Brown said he thinks Bakfish, with its picnic tables and easygoing atmosphere, is the perfect place to grow his church, which seeks out people who may not want to worship in a traditional environment.

And if the congregation stays after its Sunday gathering to sip a couple cold ones, that’s perfectly fine with both Brown and Allen.

“(The Bible says) it’s ok to drink,” Brown said, noting the famous Last Supper as an example. “We have no problem with it as long as you’re not overindulging.”

Phil and Gina Brown (Photo courtesy of Phil Brown)

Phil and Gina Brown (Photo courtesy of Phil Brown)

For the Browns, it was an eight-year journey from the time they were inspired to start a church until their vision became reality. Part of that journey, the death of their newborn son Marshall, turned their lives upside down, leaving the couple feeling lost and in need of a safe place to go through the healing process. “We needed a place to restore,” Brown said.

The couple, who now have three children, a 6-year-old and 21-month-old twins, opened Rewake Inc. in January.

Brown wants to reach out to others who have yet to find a church that fits their personal needs, and who may have tough questions about God or experiences they feel uncomfortable bringing up in church.

“When I teach, I don’t sugarcoat anything,” Brown said. He noted that the church accepts anyone regardless of their degree of faith, social status or sexual orientation.

Bakfish Brewing Co. is located at 1231 Broadway St. in Pearland. The church meets Sundays from 10 a.m. to 11:15 and includes a children’s program for infants through fourth grade. The brewery tap room opens at noon on Sundays and is family-friendly. Both have Facebook pages; click here for Rewake Inc. and here for Bakfish.